Meditation
"Through Rain, Sleet, and Snow"
Kathleen Whitmore, Senior Pastor
May 18, 2010
After serving for almost twenty years in several rural areas, moving back to the city has been a real experience. I now have to remember to lock the doors and take the keys with me wherever I go. And, yes, there are so many interesting places to go. A trip to the hardware store is no longer a four-hour adventure. There is more than one grocery store to choose from and if I happen to leave a meeting hungry at 9:00 p.m. but don’t want to cook, there is a wide variety of restaurants and drive through more than willing to fill my order.
But there are a few things I still miss from my years in rural America. Ironically, those daily trips to the post office are one of them. It was more than a place to simply receive and send mail. As people went in out of the building they greeted one another and caught up on all the local news. Business agreements were made and appointments while people were waiting in line to pick up a package or to buy some stamps. Not only that, everyone seemed to have an opinion about everything and was never shy about sharing it!
The other thing about a rural post office is that news travels fast. People often stood in the lobby reading some long awaited letter. As they read, others would often stop and wait to see if there would be any comment or concern voiced. When someone was the recipient of several cards, there was always a round of hardy congratulations or sympathetic hugs.
What those people understood was that it is important to share the joys and concerns, the celebrations and the sorrows, the successes and failures with those around them. And as important as it was to share, one of the greatest gifts that came from those early morning trips was to be heard and taken seriously.
Those of us within the church have a lot to learn from those in the post office. We should be as anxious to share the Good News with others as they are. We should take the time to listen to what others are thinking and respond to the way they are feeling. It is, after all, what God does for us. Shouldn’t we be willing to do it for others?
How beautiful . . . are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, who brings good new, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns. ...Isaiah 52:7
